99 Expedition AWD Front Drive Shaft Question. Very Confused

I have a 99 Expedition AWD with the 4.6L. When I bought the vehicle the front drive shaft was missing. I went to pull-a-part and pulled a drive shaft off a vehicle that is compatible. It is 2 1/2" to long. So when I get under my vehicle and measure it measures 37 inches. That is from the flat surface on the front end chunk to the flat surface on the transfer case. So my front drive shaft. u-joints and the flanges that the bolts go through can only be 37 inches.

So my question is.... How can I find one that fits? Everyone on eBay,Pull A Part and everywhere else I looked at are to long. Am I missing something? Very confused.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.

I went back to pull-a-part and measured ever vehicle out there. They are all about 41ish inches. Don't know why mine is that much shorter.

are you measuring DS's from the same engine configuration as well? You have a 4.6, the 5.4 came with a 4R100 which is a larger trans so teh transfer case may be sitting further back and hence making the need for a longer shaft- Just a thought

This is exactly what I was thinking, I believe the transmission casing on a 4R100 is longer by several inches than the 4r70w

Yes, the 4R100 is significantly longer... It's also a heavy pig. Swapping one right now.

How can I find out which one I have? It seems all my parts are different. This used to be a police vehicle used for high water rescue. At least that is what the police motor pool told me. It already has a 3 inch lift on it. Came that way. The police force bought it new in 99.

Look at your vehicle data sticker in the door. If you have the 4R100 then the transmission code will be an "E". I also believe the 4R100 was only used with 5.4L models and the 4.6's got the smaller 4R70w.